Meridia Eruil'vyn
"Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire." Appearance: Lady Eruil'vyn, a belle even by sin’dorei standards was a mage-priest of remarkable talent and beauty. The Lily of Aur’dinan was known primarily for her iron will, and secondly her visage. Meridia held tresses of champagne blonde hair, that spilled to the arch of her back with wispy loose curls framing her triangular face. Her skin was pale but held a subtle warmth like an alpenglow over snowcapped peaks. High cheekbones elongated her face shape, and her nose was normal by elven standards. Her eyes gleamed a luminous gold, with an amber limbus a byproduct of the reignited sunwell. Many would speculate her beauty stemmed from the Eruilvyn’s history of selective bloodlines, and in part it did but magic also played a role. In congruity with thalassian tradition, Lady Eruilvyn was often found in robes, even in the field. Others could argue that pants would allow for better mobility, but Meridia felt glamorous in a way, by wearing robes to battle, often these garments were elaborate beyond measure as she loved extravagance and making a statement. 'History' Prelude: Meridia was born in the grand quaking woodlands of Quel’thalas, she was born into the noble House of Eruil'vyn , but her nobility was kept secret from her, by the request of her father. Her father was an arcanist and belonged the ancient bloodline of the Eruil'vyns, a sect of magisters dating back to the exile of the high elves. Sol was on neutral grounds with his family, but he wanted Meridia a much simpler life, and the Eruil'vyn family had harbored many allies, but as well many an enemy. His older sister, Lyssa Eruilvyn began ruling over the province after the sudden death of both their parents, Vanessa Eruil'vyn, and Altrius Eruil'vyn. Altrius was assassinated at the Gala of the Rising Sun, a festive party celebrating the spring equinox. Vanessa went on a hunting trip with second cousin, Viscount Caspius Lenomere, and his wife Rosellina Lenomere. Vanessa was later found dead at the scene after the Duke's wife fatally shot Vanessa on a 'hunting accident'. The count's plans were traversing the course to dismantle House Eruil'vyn, but Lyssa stepped up to the plate. She decided to rise to the occasion and be crowned Viscountess of Aur'dinan. Lyssa's reign was controversial at first as how both her parents were dead, and she didn't have an heir to the throne. She decided to master the art of nobility, by enlisting countless resources into hiring spies, and she would bribe other houses, and gather blackmail, and do whatever she needed to gain political influence, or any influence at all. Lyssa worked as the reigning political body over the house. She established many more alliances, and sought out justice for her mother and father. She hinted at the possibility of marriage to several notable families, while ultimately marrying no one; yet she continued to maintain alliances with these families. Half a century after Lyssa's rise to power, Sol fell in love with Celeste Ariavale and quickly courted her. After his marriage he told Lyssa he would flee, in fear that the cut-throat nobility would hear of this news and want the possible heir dead as Lyssa was infertile. It was better for Lyssa to stay under the radar, else she would probably have to marry into another house to keep her people safe. 'Early Life:' Meridia was born in the humble village of Fairbreeze, by her mother Celeste, There in the serene forests of Quel’thalas, Meridia frolicked for centuries. She would later learn to wield the holy light to the pleasure of her mother, but she was always busy with her scholar studies. In her youth she studied at the academy of Endala’ Arkhana, a college for magistery seeking mastery over enchantments. The college was located east of the mountain range on the borders of Quel’thalas and that is where she rigorously studied, aspiring to become a archmage. She had a hard time in school, often failing with her enchantments. Something often went awry with how she programmed the magic. To compensate for her failures, she picked up a few basic tomes on illusion magic from the library, and attempted to conceal whatever went wrong. Illusion magic was much easier to learn for her than enchantments, and it could fool most of her peers, but not her professors. Her professors recommended she study Illusions at another college, after completing her proficient training over enchantments. There wasn't a college for Illusions in her time, but she was soon referred to be an apprentice for a court wizard of House Glaridon, a house in the southwest of Quel'thalas. As a court wizard's apprentice she would see to the trials of the citizens of the county detecting magic, and investigating magical evidence, under Vorunis Glaridon, a third cousin to the autocrat Osterick Glaridon. Osterick was a detestable leader. His citizens had little faith in him as a leader, and there Meridia had her first glance at nobility and all it had to offer. Osterick was self indulgent, routinely eating lavish meals while his people had tiny rations. Somehow his people still kept a sliver of hope, as House Gloridon conquered ruthless and fearsome beasts in its time and there would always be celebration and feasts after a wanted monster was slain. This hope was maintained by Vorunis the court wizard, as his inquistion in the city would seek out citizens that questioned the rule of House Glaridon, those who besmirched Gloridon's rule were priorities of the inquistion. Meridia quickly moved up the ranks and joined the inquistion in her tenure under House Gloridon, deep within her conscience she was appalled at what was happening but her thirst for knowledge muffled her conscience. The inquistion routinely hunted down those who spoke ill of Osterick Gloridon, and sought to find them with few witnesses. Vorunis spearheading the campaign began an encounter by casting an illusion in any secluded place within the county, many times it would be a gruesome beast. He did all this under the cloak of invisibility ofcourse. As the court wizard cast the illusion, the inquistion used mind magic on any passerby to alter their perception of what happened, often instilling fear and hysteria to stay within the confines of the viscounty. The beasts were later hunted by the Vanguard of Gloridon, but the beasts were always normal animals heavily enchanted with complex illusions, which fooled almost everyone but those with trained vision. Eruilvyn ended her tenure after 15 years as a courtwizard's apprentice before departing after her knighting under House Gloridon. The knighting left a bad taste in her mouth and soon enough, she moved her efforts towards her hometown of Fairbreeze in pursuit of fame and accolades throughout the rest of the province. A Perfect Illusion The Luminary was anything but ordinary, her beauty was only rivaled by her clemency. Many spoke of her noble heart, but only if they knew what really was the truth. Meridia journeyed to a small county to the east of Fairbreeze. Under rule of House Autumnglow, Miss Eruilvyn began work for the house as a traveling healer. She was given quarters in the local infirmary, where she practiced on patients for several moons before being asked to fetch a bundle of herbs for Lady Wisteria Autumnglow. Lady Wisteria was a viscountess loved by her people, her simple outlook, kind gestures, and brave heart were all traits admired by her citizens. These traits resonated within Meridia, as something to truly admire and aspire to hold on her own one day. Meridia tore up her dress with a dagger while scavenging for herbs in the local thicket, and told a wild tale of a creature within the dark forest near the viscounty. Lady Wisteria was a battle hardened warrior, and relished the opportunity to slay the creature. Wisteria accompanied by a search party, trailed after the fabled creature within the dark woodland. With great cunning Meridia, guessed she would send many after the beast, and she conjured several traps within the thicket. Caltrops were thrown onto all major paths to slow down the calvary, causing Lady Wisteria to command the forces to split up on foot and alert each other when they found the beast. Eruilvyn kept close to Wisteria, as Wisteria looked to her as a beacon of light in the dark forest. The two stumbled upon a hulking and hollowed oak within the thicket, before a mistep sent Wisteria tumbling into a hollow beneath the tree. There Meridia, cast an illusion of an amani troll hexxing Lady Wisteria. Meridia then seared Wisteria's mind with images of the troll over and over again to create the 'hex'. Wisteria had little acuity, and was easy to manipulate, following the mind spell, she placed an almost perfect illusion of a dark runic marking onto Lady Wisteria's forearm. Later escaping the hollow and returning above ground, Lady Wisteria called off the search party and returned home. She laid in her bed for days battling this new come affliction. The shadowy insignia of the amani on her body, drained the morale of her people. Her people tried countless herbal remedies but none fruited a benefit. Meridia decided to intervene after the nobles of House Autumnglow turned to the new healer in town. Meridia brewed a tincture of alpine thistle, mageroyal, lavender, and honey. She administered the dose to Lady Wisteria as she kept steady at her bedside until the others lost hope and returned to their quarters. The tincture knocked Wisteria unconscious, and Meridia altered her memories and removed the 'hex'. As Wisteria awoke, and spoke of another bad dream, she realized the reoccuring nightmare and dark mark had dissipated and she praised Lady Eruilvyn. Thanking Meridia, from a terrible fate, Lady Wisteria knighted her under House Autumnglow, giving her the title 'The Benevolent.' Even to this day, Meridia cherishes that title. 'Rising from the Ashes of the Third War': Following the aftermath of the third war, Meridia sought to aid Quel'thalas, and the wounded that required her healing. After she did she everything in her power to cleanse the taint of those that weren't fatally wounded, her illusions imprinted on several that were almost fatally wounded. Her patients often said she was a white-winged angel when she treated their injuries, saving few from the brink of death if possible, but she truly cared about the people of Quel'thalas, though ulterior motives for fame still carried throughout all her work. She later traversed to the libraries of Silvermoon in an effort to contact all relatives, to find out who was still alive, a shocking revelation as she discovered she was of a noble blood-line, and sought to restore the legacy she read of. After Quel'thalas was stabilized, she began a search party to find her father who went missing during the onslaught. She eventually discovered that he had traveled to Evanil'danas to warn Lyssa of the oncoming threat, but he was too late, as an enchanted memory crystal found in the rubble of Evanil'danas foretold the events that transpired. The scourge began their assault on the fortress in the mountains, the undead had brought their troops into the duchy via gargoyle, and in tow the plague barrels. Lyssa watched as her kingdom burned before her eyes, but she did her best to fight back. As a last resort effort Lyssa and Sol activated the mountain offenses, and an incredible rock-slide would plummet down the mountain. Sol and Lyssa used their combined effort to enchant the rock with holy-fire, doing their best to thwart that regiment of the scourge. They both perished, and the rock-fall destroyed much of the duchy. Meridia's mother honored the tenet of compassion, even into her last moments on Azeroth. Many of the soldiers had contracted the plague, or were infected by the taint of the scourge. Meridia and her mother did their best working in the eastern side of the kingdom of Quel'thalas as healers, during the onslaught. After the scourge ceased to attack, Meridia and Celeste returned to a kingdom demolished. They along with the others spellbound to the sunwell, were devastated that the font was desecrated, a great blow to the spirit of Quel'thalas. Along with the last remaining mage-priests of the elves, they sought to preserve the lives of the honorable elves that fought the scourge and did their best to protect Quel'thalas. Meridia was far more cautious than her mother, but her mother put the light and compassion before herself. She was venerable for a high elf, and in her holy haste to purify and restore life to her kin, she lost her own. She had contracted a case of the plague after attempting to restore a relative's life, but this strain of plague was so invasive and powerful it took her own life just from touching her. Meridia mourned the loss of her parents, and her relatives, friends, and even colleagues, but she sought to take the fight to Arthas to avenge her people. She later joined the Argent Dawn as a mage-priest, in a hope to restore glory to her family's name and her people. 'The Frozen Crucible' Deployment wasn't easy for Meridia. She faced a new environment of icy wastelands, juxtaposed alongside few anomalies of habitable green land. Serving as a medic in the Argent Crusade, she witnessed an unfathomable number of injured troops. But this was where she hardened her discipline into stone, she could not refuse healing to the brave, Eruilvyn swallowed her fear and lead by faith. The argent crusade attracted many healers from different backgrounds, and in turn Meridia learned many new skills in herbology with treating ailments, and a basic understanding of alchemy from the kal'dorei and tauren in the crusade. She offered mercy to the afflicted, using the light to the best of her ability. Looking back she saw many gruesome, and unimaginable hexes and diseases cast onto the stalwart argent troops, but this was a reality that solidified her will and her inner faith. Violet and Silver Linings After the long awaited defeat of Arthas Menethil came to term, Meridia was sent back to Dalaran as a a liaison between the Argent Crusade and the Kirin Tor. She worked in Dalaran and ultimately pledged into the Kirin Tor, to continue her studies as a mage-priest. For years she stayed within the city, studying alongside her fellow mages, but she longed to return to Quel'thalas. With a few major operations left scattered throughout the plaguelands, Meridia left for a brief period to serve alongside her Argent brothers and sisters. Ever-solemn of what the lands had become, she heeded the call in hopes to return to a normal homeland one day. After the campaign in the plaguelands, Meridia was granted stewardship within the Argent Crusade, advising relations with several thalassian houses bordering the plaguelands. She studied within Dalaran for the next few months, serving alongside the Kirin Tor in the Nexus War, and remaining a constant ally of the Argents. 'Purge of Dalaran' Following Jaina's decision to purge the Sunreavers and all blood elves of Dalaran, Meridia left the city for good. She took residency in Hearthglen alongside her Argent kin, as she feared her research in magical shields could be used in war, and the fact that she may have perished if she hadn't left. The residency in Hearthglen was a monotonous one, fighting the leftover swarms of undead from the third war was a daily strugglel; but in all she was able to harden her will and hone her skills with the holy light. 'The Legion Invasion' As word broke out of a third legion invasion of Azeroth, Meridia was deployed alongside the bulk of the Argent Crusade. Witnessing what she could only describe as a ragnarok for Azeroth, as the hellish fiends of the burning legion outnumbered the combined armies ten to one. Prepared for any fate to defend Azeroth, she marched alongside the argent soldiers. With her mastery in abjuration she was tasked alongside a fleet of Kirin Tor and Argent magisters to maintain the bulwark over the armies as they marched forward. She could only describe it as sheer chaos, as her divine aegis cracked as felfire ballistas launched missiles at the army. Pushing onward through the shore she remained constant in her faith, but alas the death of Tirion Fordring almost extinguished her hope. As a chance at victory waned, and the majority of the argent crusade forces slain, she retreated through a Kirin Tor portal to Dalaran as the armies were overwhelmed. A Golden Dawn Now in Dalaran she had two options, to stay alongside the Kirin Tor since Jaina's departure, or return to her homeland. Time had passed so quickly, she hadn't realized she hadn't been home in over ten years. An epiphany told her this was her calling, that the people of Quel'thalas needed her and so she returned. She researched her family history in the libraries of Silvermoon, only to find that she had noble blood. A secret that was kept to her, from her mother and father. She found solace in the fact that her parents wished her a simple life, away from what the chapters described as a cut-throat and volatile nobility. Aspiring for greatness, she accepted the task to restore House Eruilvyn, reflecting on the lessons she learned while serving House Gloridon and House Autumnglow, and how crucial they would be in the delicate art of nobility. Meridia later found reference of an ancient order dating back three millenia to the Troll Wars. It was the Order of the Golden Dawn, a guild of high elves that operated in a guerilla warfare against the amani. It had a resurgence after the fall, many of the members taking up alongside the Argent Crusade. Meridia decided it was her duty to call for the third resurgence, and acting on the treaties the order had established centuries ago. She alongside Kalysra Sunspell, an ancient family ally, re-established the order, and began work in the Southern Ghostlands, a no man's land since the fall of Quel'thalas. Beginning the effort to retake the province of Radiance from the demons and other dark entities that resided within the land. Notably the Golden Dawn was able to retake Evanil'danas, as it was occupied by the burning legion, as a dreadlord overloaded an ancient elven warding device, encompassing the keep in a bitter blizzard. The Golden Dawn was able to create an avalanche from one of the mountain peaks, overwhelming the demon forces and re-capturing the keep. After many other operations to follow, the Golden Dawn stabilized Aur'dinan, and the Southern Ghostlands. Bringing hope back to the people of Quel'thalas, and even the forgotten counties in the Ghostlands. As Aur'dinan saw a new dawn, the bulk of the Order was sent to fight alongside the troops on Argus. After the defeat of the burning legion, and the threat within Aur'dinan ceased to exist, Lady Eruilvyn followed tradition and disbanded the Order of the Golden Dawn, but offered the members lifetime residency within her viscounty, many returned to their normal lives, but few took the offer and are still within Eruilvyn's realm. After the talk of human mobilization within the eastern kingdoms after the azerite conflict, Lady Eruilvyn struck an alliance with House Firavel and House Firesong, seeking to unify the southern provinces to repel the invaders if they chose to invade the bordering Ghostlands. 'Quotes' "Nobility is a double edged sword, you can use it to charter through obstacles, but if you aren't careful you may cut your own hand." 'Trivia' She's a mage-priest, so she wields both the arcane and the light. (Mage-Priests are a unit in WC3)